Chapter 679: Infiltration

Jiang Yi and the others felt that Wu had no future to speak of, but Yi Tianyun thought differently. It was true he was past the prime age for cultivation, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t achieve anything. The Power God Bloodline alone proved Wu still had immense potential.

The fact that he could already use a sliver of his Power God Bloodline meant it wasn’t useless; it wasn’t something buried deep within his body, impossible to trigger. Based on that alone, Yi Tianyun believed Wu could absolutely become a Grand General!

With a bit of training, he would skyrocket through the ranks. However, they would need to find suitable Martial Arts for him; anything too difficult would likely be impossible for him to learn. Wu’s innate talent was indeed lacking. A powerful bloodline had nothing to do with talent, since it was an inheritance. One could inherit it no matter how poor their talent was.

“I almost couldn’t lift it. I would’ve had to go back to plowing the fields…” Wu scratched his head. His breathing had already returned to normal, and he looked as if nothing had happened.

“That won’t happen. You won’t have to go back to plowing fields, no matter what.” Yi Tianyun smiled faintly. ‘He thinks Wu is pretty good. I could take him as a subordinate and, with a little training, he could definitely become a great general!’

‘Born with divine power, he wouldn’t need particularly powerful Martial Arts. He could kill someone with a single slap. In that respect, it’s a bit like the Evil Spirit Bloodline. When it erupts, power increases dramatically. Such terrifying strength can shatter a sturdy weapon with a single palm strike. Who could possibly resist?’

‘Speaking of which, I have a pile of those things in my inventory, but I haven’t studied them in much detail. Seeing Wu’s situation, I could see if something like the Evil Spirit Bloodline would be suitable for him.’

‘The Evil Spirit Race isn’t inherently evil; their greed simply led them to ruin. A sword can kill, too. It all depends on how you use it.’

‘Unless a bloodline requires drinking the blood of thousands daily to cultivate, I would never let anyone learn it. The Evil Spirit Bloodline doesn’t require that. They simply believed the Phoenix Race’s bloodline could enhance their own power, so they wanted to capture and devour them. It was as simple as that.’

“Really? You’re a smooth talker, Yi.” Wu gave a simple-hearted laugh. “Everyone else says I’m only good for plowing fields, that I could replace a whole team of oxen.”

“That’s them, being incredibly wasteful…”

‘Making Wu plow fields is a complete waste, using the Power God Bloodline to till the land. If the original Power God were alive to see this, he’d probably cough up blood in fury. His divine power being used to plow fields? How could he not be apoplectic?’

“Alright, just you two. The rest of you can go home now,” Jiang Yi said, gesturing for the others to leave.

The remaining candidates were dumbfounded. One of them stepped forward and asked hurriedly, “You’re only picking two people? What about the third person?”

Only Yi Tianyun and Wu had managed to lift the second boulder; everyone else couldn’t budge it. However, they had been told from the very beginning that three people would be chosen. Now there were only two, so the numbers didn’t add up.

“Their strength is great enough to count for several of you. Besides, none of the rest of you passed, so we don’t need anyone else.” Jiang Yi shook his head. Yi Tianyun and Wu were so strong that one of them was worth several men.

The recruitment was mainly focused on women anyway. Men were generally just for tasks like chopping firewood, so they didn’t need very many.

With Jiang Yi having spoken, they could only leave in resignation. Before they departed, Jiang Yi handed out a number of Body Refining Pills to them. These were beneficial for their cultivation and also happened to be the most inexpensive type of Elixir Pills.

It cost very little to refine a large batch, making them the perfect parting gift to appease the rejected candidates.

They were indeed overjoyed upon receiving the pills. Although they were reluctant to leave, getting a good number of Body Refining Pills to take back was still a great consolation. With these Body Refining Pills, they could break through one or two cultivation layers, which was more than satisfactory for them.

“You two, come with me. Jiang Hong, you can escort them back,” Jiang Yi said with a wave of his hand. He added to Jiang Hong consolingly, “When you get back, I’ll buy you a drink!”

“Fine…” Jiang Hong’s face fell. Without even giving the others a chance to rest, he began leading them back the way they had come.

Though there were grumbles of complaint, the group still followed him and departed. The remaining female disciples, however, were ecstatic. Not a single one of them had been eliminated, which was certainly a cause for celebration.

“I can’t believe only the two of us made it through. Their standards are way too strict,” Wu remarked.

“They don’t need many male disciples for menial tasks, so it’s normal for them to be selective,” Yi Tianyun said, shaking his head. ‘Attendants are almost always female. I’ve rarely seen men serving others.’

‘A brawny man helping someone bathe, for example? Obviously, no one would be happy with that.’

Jiang Yi then led the fourteen of them forward, instructing them along the way, “All of you, stick close to me. Don’t get lost.”

With that, he entered the forest, his hands continuously forming Hand Seals. The others looked around, their curiosity piqued by every detail of their new surroundings.

‘This grand array isn’t bad,’ Yi Tianyun thought with a nod. ‘An ordinary Cultivator would have to put in some real effort to break in.’ By “ordinary Cultivator,” he meant someone at the Spirit King Stage at a minimum. Anyone with a lower cultivation level couldn’t even dream of entering.

Under Jiang Yi’s guidance, they quickly passed through the forest. The moment they emerged, a wave of frigid air washed over them, immediately followed by the faint fragrance of plum blossoms.

What entered their view was a snow-covered mountain range where plum blossoms grew in abundance. They added countless specks of pink to a world draped in silver. These were known as Celestial Plums, a higher grade than ordinary plum blossoms, classified as peak third-grade Spirit Medicine.

This meant that the plum blossoms growing on the mountain constituted a vast field of third-grade Spirit Medicine, ready to be harvested for alchemical use at any moment.

“This is incredible! I’ve never seen anything so magical. A moment ago, it was all green fields, and now it’s a snowy landscape…” Wu said, utterly astonished.

Yi Tianyun had expected this all along. He had already seen through the formation from the outside and gotten a clear look at the environment within. ‘Not bad,’ he thought. ‘The Ice Attribute Spiritual Power is quite dense here. It’s a suitable place for Cultivators with an ice-based constitution to live.’

A smile touched the corners of Yi Tianyun’s lips. He had managed to slip in easily without needing to force his way through at all. If he had tried to break in by force, it would have actually taken some time and effort.

He was confident he could break the barrier, but sneaking in discreetly would have still required some time and effort. A frontal assault on the main gate would have been faster, but far too conspicuous.

It wasn’t as if they had a blood feud with him. If they were treating Shi Xueyun well, why would he need to raise such a ruckus? That would be repaying kindness with hostility.

When Shi Xueyun was taken away, they hadn’t made things difficult for the Celestial Cloud Empire. In fact, they had even given them a great deal of Treasure. That alone was enough to earn them some goodwill.

This was precisely why he chose to sneak in. If his plan had been to forcibly abduct Shi Xueyun, he would have blown the Celestial Plum Divine Clan to kingdom come by now!